Archive for December 2015

ULAANBAATAR, Mongolia /PRNewswire/ — Mongolia Holdings, Inc. (OTCQB: “MNHD“) and Monroad, LLC are pleased to announce that they have entered into a Contribution and Exchange Agreement. Upon completion, Monroad will become a wholly owned subsidiary of Mongolia Holdings (the “Company”). In exchange, Monroad will receive preferred shares of Mongolia Holdings convertible into an amount equal to approximately 49% of the outstanding shares of Mongolia Holdings at time of the Closing. Some of the conditions precedent to closing include the conversion of certain debt obligations to equity, a $2.00 per share trading price and capital sufficient to execute the new business strategy of the combined companies. Additional details are available in the MNHD Form 8-K filed with the SEC on December 29, 2015.

Founded in 2001, Monroad is recognized as one of the largest road construction and earth moving companies inMongolia. Monroad offers a full range of construction services including the construction and maintenance of roads, bridges, railroad lines, drainage work, earthwork, flood protection dams, and heavy equipment rental. Monroad counts the Mongolian government and Oyu Tolgoi LLC (Rio Tinto’s Turquoise Hill Mine), as two of its largest completed-project customers. Monroad’s most recent audited financial statements report revenue of 36,286,005,641 Mongolian Tugriks, or $19,214,805 USD as of December 31, 2014. Audited results for the year ending 2015 will be disclosed in a subsequent Form 8-K to be prepared and filed by Mongolia Holdings.

The Company’s President, Brad Siniscalchi, a 23-year veteran of Hertz Equipment Rental, commented: “This transaction marks a significant breakthrough for our 2016 business strategy. Monroad’s existing facilities, capabilities and staff should significantly streamline and expedite the deployment of our Hertz Equipment Rental franchise operation in Ulaanbaatar, while potentially saving significant hard and soft launch costs. Mongolia Holdings will now possess a much wider array of capabilities necessary to meet growing demands for equipment and construction services, driven in part by international infrastructure development initiatives like ‘One Belt, One Road’ and mega-mining industry projects like Oyu Tolgoi.”

Tengis Garamgaibaatar, CEO of Monroad, stated: “Although it has not previously been our core focus, Monroad has operated an equipment rental business in Mongolia for many years. We plan to bring Monroad’s facilities, equipment, highly-trained staff, equipment maintenance capabilities, logistics, market knowledge, reputation and enthusiasm to the deployment and build-out of Hertz Equipment Rental operations throughout Mongolia. The expanded platform makes us better prepared to tackle larger projects and to more aggressively execute the growth strategy of our existing road building and earth moving operations. We believe that the systems and efficiencies of Hertz and the talent and experience of the combined management team will create many advantages for Mongolia Holdings for years to come.”

Chairman of Mongolia Holdings, Former US Ambassador Michael Ussery, said: “In addition to all the obvious benefits of this transaction, the consolidation of Monroad into Mongolia Holdings facilitates the assimilation of 15 years of market knowledge, experience and relationships, which cannot be easily replicated by other market participants. In addition, with the recent $4.4 billion financing announcement of Rio Tinto’s expansion of the Oyu Tolgoi mega-mine, it’s not unreasonable to expect greater economic growth for this exciting market, which, in turn could measurably increase demand for Monroad’s road construction and earth moving services.”

About the Company:

Mongolia Holdings, Inc., through its wholly-owned subsidiary Mongolia Equipment Rental Corporation, is the Hertz Equipment Rental franchisee for Mongolia. This exclusive franchise allows the Company to operate a business of renting, selling, and maintaining equipment for use in construction, mining, materials-handling, commercial, and industrial activities in Mongolia under the unique plan and system of Hertz Equipment Rental Corporation and Hertz Equipment Rental System. In 2014, the Company formed two wholly-owned operating subsidiaries in Mongoliacalled HERC, LLC and Equipment Rental, LLC. When qualifications are met, Mongolia Holdings intends to apply for an up-listing to the NYSE Markets, NASDAQ, or another US national securities exchange. While the Company is confident in its plans, it can offer no assurances that it will be successful in listing on an exchange of its choice. Upon closing with Monroad, it will also be one of the largest road construction companies, and best-known brands inMongolia.

About Mongolia:

Mongolia has recently been one of the fastest growing economies in the world, led by the extraction of vast deposits of copper, gold, uranium, iron ore, coal and other commodities. Its proximity to four of the largest economies in the world — China, Russia, Japan, and South Korea — creates trade and cross-border investment opportunities that are distinct from those available to competing resource-rich countries. Management believes that these natural advantages, along with recent pro-business changes in foreign investment rules, securities laws, and mining regulations, have the nation poised for sustained growth of construction, infrastructure development and industrialization. Mongolia is an independent democracy of approximately three million people dedicated to becoming an important economic hub and transportation corridor of Eurasia.

This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. All statements other than statements of historical facts included in this press release are forward-looking statements. Without limiting the foregoing, the words “believe,” “anticipate,” “plan,” “expect,” “seek,” “potential,” “estimate,” and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. These statements relate to future events, including the Company’s expectations regarding Mongolia’s economy, development, and potential growth, and the Company’s and its subsidiaries’ business and operations in Mongolia or to the Company’s or its subsidiaries’ future financial performance, and involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and other factors that may cause our actual results, levels of activity, performance or achievements to be materially different from any future results, levels of activity, performance or achievements expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements. Investors should not place any undue reliance on forward-looking statements since they involve known and unknown uncertainties and other factors which are, in some cases, beyond the Company’s control which could, and likely will, materially affect actual results, levels of activity, performance or achievements.

Any forward-looking statement reflects the Company’s current views with respect to future events and is subject to these and other risks, uncertainties, and assumptions relating to operations, results of operations, growth strategy, and liquidity. Such risks, uncertainties, and other factors which could impact the Company and its subsidiaries and the forward-looking statements contained herein are included in the Company’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The Company assumes no obligation to publicly update or revise these forward-looking statements for any reason, or to update the reasons actual results could differ materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements, even if new information becomes available in the future.

SAN JOSE, California /PRNewswire/ — Teikoku Pharma USA, Inc. (“Teikoku” or “the Company”) announced today that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (“FDA”) has approved Docetaxel Injection, Non-Alcohol Formula (“Docetaxel Injection”) for the treatment of breast cancer, non-small cell lung cancer, prostate cancer, gastric adenocarcinoma, and head and neck cancer. Teikoku entered into an exclusive licensing agreement with Eagle Pharmaceuticals Inc. (“Eagle Pharmaceuticals”) in October 2015 to market, sell and distribute Docetaxel Injection in the U.S.

The main difference, compared to other docetaxel formulations, is that Docetaxel Injection is the first non-alcohol formulation approved in the U.S. Further differentiating it from some of the currently marketed docetaxel formulations is that Teikoku’s Docetaxel Injection:

Requires no prior dilution with a diluent and is ready to add to the infusion solution; and

Is available in three presentations: 20mg/ml in single-dose vials, and 80 mg/4 mL or 160 mg/8 mL in multiple-dose vials.

The need for non-alcohol docetaxel gained visibility in June 2014 when the FDA issued a Drug Safety Communication warning patients that docetaxel may cause symptoms of alcohol intoxication after treatment. Manufacturers of docetaxel formulations for domestic use were subsequently required to revise their product labels to warn about this risk. Some U.S. hospitals and clinics require patients to wait two or more hours after treatment with docetaxel before they can be released. The Company’s formulation of docetaxel was specifically developed to address these concerns.

“Docetaxel Injection addresses a compelling need in the docetaxel market. As the first alcohol-free formulation approved in the U.S., we believe the benefits of this novel formulation will provide an option for patients with alcohol sensitivity or a preference for an alcohol-free treatment. We are excited to add alcohol-free docetaxel to our growing portfolio of differentiated injectable products and believe it has the potential to improve the lives of patients, resolve concerns among health care professionals at hospitals and infusion centers, and ultimately drive value for Eagle stakeholders,” said Scott Tarriff, President and Chief Executive Officer of Eagle Pharmaceuticals.

“The approval of Docetaxel Injection, our first oncology product, is a significant milestone in Teikoku’s history, and Docetaxel Injection marks our second FDA approved product as New Drug Application (NDA). In addition, Eagle Pharmaceuticals’ strong presence in the oncology space makes Eagle an excellent partner for our product,” saidPaul Mori, President and CEO of Teikoku.

About Docetaxel

Docetaxel is a taxane product indicated for the treatment of breast cancer, non-small cell lung cancer, prostate cancer, gastric adenocarcinoma, and head and neck cancer.

Taxotere® (docetaxel) is marketed by sanofi-aventis U.S. LLC. Since its patent expiration in 2011, several generics have entered into the market. The alcohol content of these docetaxel formulations, including Taxotere, ranges from 2.0 to 6.4 grams in a 200 mg dose.

About Teikoku Pharma USA, Inc.

Teikoku Pharma USA Inc., located in San Jose, California, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Teikoku Seiyaku Co., Ltd. of Japan, is an international specialty pharmaceutical company that develops and manufactures pharmaceutical products based on our delivery platform technologies. Teikoku’s main product is Lidoderm® (Lidocaine 5% Patch) for post-herpetic neuralgia developed by Teikoku and distributed by Endo Pharmaceuticals in the U.S and Grunenthal GmbH in Europe and Latin America as Versatis® and by Mundipharma in Asia. Teikoku’s therapeutic focus is in Pain Management, CNS, and Oncology.

About Eagle Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

Eagle is a specialty pharmaceutical company focused on developing and commercializing injectable products that address the shortcomings, as identified by physicians, pharmacists and other stakeholders, of existing commercially successful injectable products. Eagle’s strategy is to utilize the FDA’s 505(b)(2) regulatory pathway. Additional information is available on the company’s website at www.eagleus.com.

TAICHUNG, Taiwan /PRNewswire/ — Siliconware Precision Industries Co., Ltd. (Taiwan Stock Exchange: 2325.TT, NASDAQ: SPIL) (the “Company”) announced today that it has formally received the Public Tender Offer Prospectus and relevant documents from Advanced Semiconductor Engineering, Inc. (Taiwan Stock Exchange: 2311.TT, NASDAQ: ASX) (“ASE”) to acquire up to 24.71% of the common shares and/or American depositary shares of the Company.

In accordance with Articles 14, paragraph 1 and 14-1 of the Regulations Governing Public Tender Offers for Securities of Public Companies, the Company will, within ten (10) days after its receipt of the copy of the Public Tender Offer Report Form, the Public Tender Offer Prospectus, and other relevant documents, hold meetings of the Review Committee and the Board of Directors, and have the prescribed particulars publicly announced.

HSINCHU, Taiwan /PRNewswire/ — Solar industry exhibitions this year experienced significant increases in the proportion of solar tracking systems. Due to limited land resources, the overall investment returns of solar tracking systems far exceeds that of fixed-type PV systems, which was reflected by the market’s purchase orders. Savvy PV investors have been anticipating new and advanced products that they hope will bring about more efficiency, with emphasis on lowering costs, increasing generation capacity, reducing operation repairs and maintenance frequencies.

World’s Largest Rooftop Dual-Axis Solar Power Station has been Completely Installed in Taiwan

BIG SUN Group is continuously committed to the development and promotion of their dual-axis iPV Tracker. They have obtained numerous international patents for their dual-axis solar tracking system. Its universal axis and cable driven mechanism allows for 360 degrees horizontal tilt for optimal sun tracking angle. Compared to fixed-tilted PV systems, the annual power generation output of the iPV Tracker may go up by 30-50%, depending on location, while only increasing cost by 8-10%. “But, we are still not satisfied,” stated Big Sun Group’s Chairman Summer Luo. “We continuously strive for excellence in our iPV Tracker with an aim to contribute positively to the global green energy environment.”

As a global leader in solar tracking systems, the BIG SUN Group is constantly improving and innovating, which has enabled the dual-axis iPV Tracker to be recognized for many achievements including the Industry Innovation Award (2013) presented by Taiwan’s Ministry of Economic Affairs and the Top 10 Highlights Award (2015) at the SNEC PV Expo. This year, the iPV Tracker has undergone new design changes in wind resistance, weight bearing capacity, and stability, while at the same time, effectively reducing cost, simplifying operation and maintenance. With these improvements, the ROI rate of the iPV Tracker may be 3.3 times, which addresses a main concern for PV power plant investors.

BIG SUN Group and Chailease Finance Co., Ltd. have jointly developed the world’s largest rooftop dual-axis solar tracking system at 840 kW in Pingtung, Taiwan. The annual power efficiency increase compared to fixed-tilted PV systems, within 5km of the same area, is expected to exceed 35%. Recently, the government issued an initiative releasing 3,800 hectare for agriculture and solar use. This initiative will be a great opportunity for iPV Tracker to extend its feature by increasing power generation capability, integrating agriculture and animal husbandry, bringing multiple incomes from three different industries.

BIG SUN Group has set their sights on expanding the global deployment of the iPV Tracker. The company has recently signed an agreement to install a 5-MW project in Japan. Furthermore, over half of China’s ten largest green energy groups are in various stages of evaluating the iPV Tracker, most notably, the TBEA demonstration site in Xinjiang, China. With the distribution network laid out in Japan and several international strategic agreements in place, next year is forecasted to experience an exponential volume of orders from Japan, China, India, Europe, and the USA.

About BIG SUN Group

BIG SUN was founded in 2006. Its core business is focused on the design, production, and sale of high-quality solar products. BIG SUN’s main products include 6″ mono-crystalline silicon solar cells, the iPV Solar Tracker and the web-based iPVita monitoring & control system. The current conversion efficiency of BIG SUN’s 6″ mono-crystalline silicon solar cell is 20.0% (60-cells module with up to 290 watts power). Based on its extensive product lines, BIG SUN can offer vertical integrated PV power system solutions.

Chailease Finance Co., Ltd. (CFC) was established in 1977 and the main services are leasing, installment, factoring, corporate direct loan and off-shore financing (OSF). CFC is at the leading position in Taiwan’s leasing industry and provides professional financial solutions to customers.

HANOI, Vietnam/PRNewswire/ — On 27thNovember 2015, the RE & EE Vietnam Exhibition 2015 was successfully concluded with the participation of the European Pavilion hosted by EU-Vietnam Business Networking (EVBN) and ten other exhibitors from the solar, wind energy, automation and control, biogas, recycling technology, waste management, heating transfer applications, and waste-derived fuel industries.

The EU Pavilion won the most attractive booth at RE & EE Vietnam 2015

During 25th – 27th November, participants acquired much valuable knowledge and information from more than ten presentations by top-notch professionals in the RE & EE conference with the theme: “Energy Efficiency, New & Renewable Energy Opportunities & Challenges in Vietnam“. Alongside was a conference on “How to Achieve the Best CAPEX on Your Wind Farm” organised by EVBN and CJR Renewables. This is one of the activities in their Campaign “Green Technologies Trade Mission” running from 24th – 27thNovember 2015. The Green Technologies Trade Mission was honoured to welcome H.E. Ambassador Bruno Angelet, Head of the EU Delegation to Vietnam, to open the Info Session on 24th November and kick off the Trade Mission at the European Pavilion. More than 60 meetings and many valuable contacts were made among European companies and Vietnamese clients.

During the three days of the exhibition, EU exhibitors had unique opportunities to present European technologies to target clients and increase the visibility of their businesses in the Vietnamese market. Some of the exhibitors had successfully closed some deals after the Trade Mission with all the efforts and initiatives to bring in quality visitors to the show. The European Pavilion definitely deserved the Most Attractive Booth Prize given by the RE & EE Show Organizer Committee this year.

RE & EE Vietnam 2015 ended with satisfying results going beyond our expectations. The next edition will be organised at Ho Chi Minh from 9th – 11thNovember 2016 and is expected to be much bigger and better.

Please check out our website: http://www.renergyvietnam.com/ for more information or contact the HCM Office at +84-8-2229-8991 or the Hanoi Office at +84-4-6294-1626.

Owned by UBM plc. listed on the London Stock Exchange, UBM Asia is the largest trade show organiser in Asiaand the largest commercial organiser in China, India and Malaysia. Established with its headquarters in Hong Kong and subsidiary companies across Asia and in the US, UBM Asia has a strong global network of 30 offices and 1,300 staff in 24 major cities. We operate in 20 market sectors with 230 exhibitions and conferences, 23 trade publications, 20 online products for over 1,000,000 quality exhibitors, visitors, conference delegates, advertisers and subscribers from all over the world.

TAIPEI, Taiwan/PRNewswire/ — The 2015 edition of the Taiwan Jewellery & Gem Fair took place at the Taipei World Trade Centre, Hall 1, on 20-23 November. This 4-day event featured 270 exhibitors from 24 countries and regions, exhibiting with 460 booths and attracted 9,643 buyers from 45 countries and regions. The spectacular exhibition was hailed by all participants to have been a great success.

Onsite Inquiry/negotiation

Opening Ceremony

Visiting Crowd

Visiting Crowd

Highlights of the Fair

The Opening Ceremony was attended by Ms. Ming-Li Hung, Chairman of the Taiwan Jewelry Industry Association, Mr. Chang Geng Hung, Chairman of the Taipei Jewelers’ Association, and Mr. Christopher Eve, Senior Vice President of UBM Asia Ltd., as well as numerous representatives of local jewellery associations and representatives from overseas. The large number of high level representatives from the jewellery industry attests to the status of the Taiwan Jewellery and Gem Fair as the leading professional trade platform in Taiwan.

The amount of exhibition space occupied by Taiwan jewellers increased by 30% from 2014. Taiwanexhibitors brought an extensive array of products ranging from high-end jadeite jewellery, designer jewellery, customized jewellery to diamond jewellery, covering every aspect of the industry.

Buyer delegations from Malaysia, Beijing, Guang Dong Province and Fu Jian Province of China were invited to attend the Fair. The overseas buyers paid close attention to Taiwan jewellery designs while refurbished jewellery brought by Japan exhibitors were specially favoured by guests from Mainland China.

A rich program of showcases and activities was held during the fair, including an exhibition of the art of coral carving from Master Huang Chung-Shan, a showcase of International Creative Jewellery Design Competition winning pieces, an on-site goldsmithing demonstration, a showcase of winning pieces from the Goldsmith Contest and a series of professional and educational seminars.

Visitor Analysis

A total of 9,643 unique visitors from 45 countries and regions visited the four-day Fair. Aggregate visits to the exhibition were 13,739.

8,581 visitors were from Taiwan, accounting for 89% of total visitors.

1,062 visitors came from overseas, accounting for 11% of total visitors.

Other than local Taiwan buyers, the top three visiting countries were Mainland China: 342 visitors, Hong Kong: 207 visitors and Japan 88 visitors.

Exhibitor Testimonials

Ms. Cynthia Wang, Marketing Director of Diamond Bank:

“A high quality B-to-B jewellery exhibition such as the Taiwan Jewellery & Gem Fair is important for Taiwan. Both trade and VIP buyers were well represented at the Fair. It was our first time to exhibit at the Fair, and we were highly impressed by the well thought out floorplan, visiting routes and security procedures.”

“We have been participating in the Taiwan Jewellery & Gem Fair for three consecutive years. It is always impressive how the organiser is able to provide exhibitors with a professional and elegant environment for their business meetings. Although the overall world market is somewhat slow this year, we were still able to meet new buyers from Malaysia and Indonesia. We were glad to exhibit at the Fair.”

Visitor Testimonials

Ms. Karina Chang, Purchasing Manager of City Diamond

“The Fair was bigger and better this year. Many Taiwan exhibitors clearly invested a lot in image building and brand promotion. Their booths and presentations were spectacular. We were also happy to meet our existing suppliers at the Fair which saved us travelling time and costs. We look forward to the Fair next year.”

Mr. Ermin Siow, President of the Federation of Goldsmiths And Jewellers Associations Of Malaysia

“It was a pleasure to visit the Taiwan Jewellery & Gem Fair. On behalf of our delegations, I would like to extend our appreciation for all the kind hospitality extended to us during our visit. I must say that we were quite impressed with the show overall. We were especially impressed with some exhibitors who showcased a vast array of coral jewelleries, which are not so common. Some of the jadeite jewellery on exhibit were very eye-catching.

Once again, a big thank you to the organizer for hosting our delegates, I am sure the show will even get better in times to come.”

The 4th edition of the Taiwan Jewellery & Gem Fair will return to Taipei World Trade Centre, Hall 1 on October 21 to 24, 2016. Ms. Sabine Liu, General Manager of UBM Asia Ltd., Taiwan Branch, commented: “With the B-to-B trade platform provided by UBM, the world leading organiser of jewellery trade fairs, and the continuous support from the Taiwan jewellery associations, it can be expected that the hardworking Taiwan Jewellers will bringTaiwan designer jewellery to the world stage in the near future.”

UBM Asia, organiser of the most professional international jewellery fairs globally, offers opportunities to the world’s jewellery trade. UBM Asia’s jewellery fairs attract over 100,000 trade buyers and over 10,000 exhibitors from around the world. The September Hong Kong Jewellery & Gem Fair, with over 3,750 exhibitors and more than 57,600 visitors, is the world’s number one fine jewellery event. The June Fair is Asia’s biggest mid-year international jewellery fair. UBM Asia also organises jewellery fairs in Shenzhen, Hangzhou and Shanghai inChina; Chennai, Delhi, Hyderabad and Kolkata in India; Japan; Istanbul in Turkey; Singapore; Taiwan; Freiburg in Germany; and Moscow and St Petersburg in Russian Federation.

Owned by UBM plc listed on the London Stock Exchange, UBM Asia is the largest trade show organiser in Asiaand the largest commercial organiser in China, India and Malaysia. Established with its headquarters in Hong Kong and subsidiary companies across Asia and in the US, UBM Asia has a strong global presence in 24 major cities with 30 offices and 1,300 staff.

With a track record spanning over 30 years, UBM Asia operates in 20 market sectors with 230 dynamic face-to-face exhibitions and high-level professional conferences, 23 targeted trade publications, 20 round-the-clock online products for over 1,000,000 quality exhibitors, visitors, conference delegates, advertisers and subscribers from all over the world. We provide a one-stop diversified global service for high-value business matching, quality market news and online trading networks.

UBM Asia has extensive office networks in China, Southeast Asia and India, three of the world’s fastest growing B2B events markets. UBM China has 11 offices in the major cities in mainland China, including Beijing,Shanghai, Guangzhou, Hangzhou, Guzhen and Shenzhen, where we organise 90 exhibitions and conferences. In ASEAN, UBM Asia operates from its offices in Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, Singapore, Vietnam and the Philippines with over 40 events in this region. UBM India teams in Mumbai, New Delhi, Bengaluru and Chennaiorganise 40 exhibitions and conferences every year across the country.

–Stack-on-Board RN2483 named golden-unit reference module for all future certifications; makes it easy to tap the long range and low power of LoRa wireless networks

BANGKOK /PRNewswire/ — Microchip Technology Inc., (NASDAQ: MCHP) a leading provider of microcontroller, mixed-signal, analog and Flash-IP solutions, has announced that its RN2483 LoRa® module is the world’s first to pass the LoRa Alliance’s LoRaWAN™ Certification Program. The RN2483 module was independently tested by Espotel’s accredited test laboratory to meet the functional requirements of the latest LoRaWAN 1.0 protocol specification, for operation in the 868 MHz license-free band. This ensures that designers can quickly and easily integrate their end devices into any LoRaWAN network. The LoRaWAN standard enables low-data-rate Internet of Things (IoT) and Machine-to-Machine (M2M) wireless communication with a range of up to 10 miles, a battery life of 10 years, and the ability to connect millions of wireless sensor nodes to LoRaWAN gateways.

Microchip LoRa Long-Range Sub-GHz Module (Part# RN2483)

To learn more about Microchip’s LoRa products, go to: http://www.microchip.com/LoRa—121715a. And, check out how easy the RN2483 module is to use, at Microchip’s Embedded World booth (Hall 1: Booth 1-510).

“The launch of an accredited certification program is a key step toward the LoRa Alliance’s mission to standardise an open specification for secure, carrier-grade, low-power wide area networks (LPWAN). We are proud to be the first and only company to have a module certified to the LoRaWAN 1.0 specification,” said Steve Caldwell, VP of Microchip’s Wireless Product Division and chair of the LoRa Alliance Strategic Committee. “This certification program will provide assurance to end customers that their application-specific end devices will operate on any LoRaWAN network, which is a crucial requirement for the global deployment of the IoT using LPWANs.”

“Microchip was well prepared for certification testing, and Microchip’s engineers had a very professional and meticulous approach during the test execution,” said Jouko Nikula, the product owner of Espotel’s LoRaWAN test services. “Espotel will also use Microchip’s RN2483 module as a benchmark product when further developing the LoRaWAN certification, interoperability and performance testing in our test and research laboratory.”

Before the certification program was launched, Microchip’s LoRa development team had performed extensive verification and interoperability tests with all of the major LoRaWAN network infrastructure vendors, and so was already considered to be the golden unit within the LoRaWAN ecosystem. Peter Kaae Thomsen, CTO of the leading LoRa core network provider OrbiWise, confirmed that the RN2483 module has already been adopted as the reference device used for testing their UbiQ Network Solution.

Gartner predicts that there will be 25 billion connected things in use by 2020. While the IoT market is explosively growing, developers are challenged to establish a simple, robust infrastructure with their limited resources. They are demanding a solution that requires a minimum total cost of ownership and is easy to design, with short time to market, great interoperability and nationwide deployment. Microchip’s 433/868 MHz RN2483 LoRaWAN module is a European R&TTE Directive Assessed Radio Module, accelerating development time while reducing development costs. Additionally, it combines a small module form factor of 17.8 x 26.7 x 3.0 mm with 14 GPIOs, providing the flexibility to connect and control a large number of sensors and actuators while taking up very little space.

The RN2483 module comes with the LoRaWAN protocol stack, so it can easily connect with the established and rapidly expanding LoRa Alliance infrastructure – including both privately managed local area networks (LANs) and telecom-operated public networks – to create Low Power Wide Area Networks (LPWANs) with nationwide coverage. This stack integration also enables the module to be used with any microcontroller that has a UART interface, including hundreds of Microchip’s PIC® MCUs. Additionally, the RN2483 features Microchip’s simple ASCII command interface for easy configuration and control.

The RN2483 module resolves the age-old wireless developer’s dilemma, where they had to choose between longer range and lower power consumption. By employing LoRa technology, designers can now maximise both; while reducing the cost of additional repeaters. Additionally, the RN2483 provides them with the ability to secure their network communication using AES-128 encryption.

Espotel (http://www.espotel.com) is a leading provider of development and test services for embedded systems and industrial internet applications. Position at the edge of new technology with leading technology partners and strong roots in the development of electronic devices and systems has created Espotel a wide international customer base. Espotel has offices in Finland, Poland and Sweden. With a turnover of 25 million euros in 2014, the company is showing continuous growth and profitability, enabling the development of technological expertise and excellence at customer service.

About Microchip Technology

Microchip Technology Inc. (NASDAQ: MCHP) is a leading provider of microcontroller, mixed-signal, analog and Flash-IP solutions, providing low-risk product development, lower total system cost and faster time to market for thousands of diverse customer applications worldwide. Headquartered in Chandler, Arizona, Microchip offers outstanding technical support along with dependable delivery and quality. For more information, visit the Microchip website at http://www.microchip.com/Homepage-121715a.

Note: The Microchip name and logo, and PIC are registered trademarks of Microchip Technology Incorporated in theU.S.A. and other countries. PICtail is a trademark of Microchip Technology Incorporated in the U.S.A. and other countries. All other trademarks mentioned herein are the property of their respective companies.